Dark Deception eBook Lawrence Pratt
Download As PDF : Dark Deception eBook Lawrence Pratt 
Dark Deception is an emotionally engaging and thought-provoking work that centers around a closely-knit trio of women who come to depend on one another as they attempt to live meaningful lives in a authoritarian, faith-based community. The forces their families, friendship, and others in the community exert on the three don't always work in harmony and they limited freedom addressing issues large and small. The lives of the three and other various characters unfold in a tapestry of emotions and encounters as they attempt to deal with the demands of a restrictive faith that tolerates no loyal opposition. The book's characters – both within and outside the faith – meld and collide in a series of encounters that involve family, love, betrayal, and a quest for power and control.
While based on the author's personal experiences, Dark Deception is more than a fictional adaptation of a period in his life when authority and freedom were often at odds. The text examines many of the complexities of contemporary American life, particularly in regards to authoritarian institutions and their impact on women.
In addition to the three primary protagonists, in Dark Deception, the reader is brought into the world of several women at crossroads in their lives including a young college student yearning for independence, another forced into a dogma-dictated marriage after becoming pregnant by an outsider, and a third who finds herself trapped like a bird in a gilded cage.
It seems almost ironic timing that the author completed his final edit of the text at the end of a year that found the country's major political and religious institutions attempting to dictate their various views to the female gender.
Throughout Dark Deception, as in life, each individual must choose how she or he deals with the demands of tribal membership – acceptance, departure, or death.
Dark Deception eBook Lawrence Pratt
Very apropos title as almost every chapter adds an element of deception. Interesting (fictional?) parallels to the Brighamite branch of Mormonism.Product details
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Dark Deception eBook Lawrence Pratt Reviews
"Dark Deception" is a great first novel from the talented writer, Lawrence Pratt. It is an engaging story about realistic characters who are trapped within a fictional cult that bears a strong resemblance to Mormonism. The author is obviously familiar with his subject, and presents practically every scenario that may occur within such a closed society. The story begins with the history of the cult from its origin in the 1800's, making it a somewhat slow read at the start. As a writer of Mormon-themed fiction myself, I know how challenging--nearly impossible--it is to write about the Mormons without the aid of a little explanation and backstory. Add to that, Pratt upped the challenge by creating a fictional cult. But don't put this book down! The beginning, while seemingly slow, is an excellent description of how a cult begins and then later evolves. It also lays the groundwork for the remainder of the novel, which is a fast-paced, exciting ride that includes many twists and turns as well as characters who are truly worth rooting for. In this way, "Dark Deception" is to Mormonism what "The Master" is to Scientology. As entertaining as it is informative, Pratt has made an important contribution to the body of works on Mormonism, a subject that few people are familiar with. I look forward to reading more from this author.
Imagine that a pair of fresh-faced young women show up at your door with a message of hope just as you're trying to cope with the recent death of your baby. And they offer an idyllic community -- a perfect Zion that seems too good to be true. And it is.
It sounds like Mormonism, but it isn't. Lawrence Pratt's Dark Deception is strongly informed by Mormonism, but the church in the story is "The American Church of the New Christ."
This fictional religion is believable and well fleshed-out -- and quite similar to Mormonism, but far from identical. And, considering how the discussion of literary portraits of Mormonism gets mired in elaborate debates over accuracy, I think it was a wise choice on the author's part. Instead of trying to say "Here's what Mormonism is like," he says (in essence) "Here's a story that could take place in a religion that has some of the characteristics of Mormonism," and consequently has more room for imagination. In particular, he has the leeway to make it an exciting thriller about the dangers of a community where everyone owes unquestioning allegiance to a hierarchy with ultimate power in the hands of a few top leaders.
Even though the church is fictional, the characters are very familiar the closet non-believer attending church college, racing to finish her degree before getting expelled on "morals" charges; the couple of converts who become increasingly disillusioned as the church's marketing face gives way to its real face; the liberals who cherish their childhood faith, believing their church can and should be changed from within; the church "royalty" who answer to a different set of rules than the rank-and-file; and many, many others. One of the joys of this book is the variety of lifelike characters that those of us who know Mormonism can relate to. Each character has a story (they intertwine in a way that's not confusing), and they're all interesting. The church's blueprint for life is supposed to fit everyone, but it doesn't, and it fails to fit different people in different ways.
The Dark Deception is a thoroughly exciting and enjoyable read -- I highly recommend putting it on your Summer reading list!!
Let me say first of all that I'm a friend and former coworker of Larry Pratt, who told me back in the day that he was working on this novel, so I was anxious to see what he had put together. I am very pleased to report that he is a first-rate writer (which I already knew since we were fellow technical writers), and his novel is engaging as well as disturbing from start to finish. What struck me above all is his ability to bring to life a multitude of vivid and believable characters in his look inside his fictional American Church of the New Christ.
After a prologue, the book opens with a fascinating backstory about the origins of this church as two wagon trains heading west to Oregon Territory in 1865 in the aftermath of the Civil War, one a group led by a former Union Cavalry officer heading out of Missouri, the other a group of former Confederates from Arkansas, join forces in an unlikely alliance. The story picks up steam in the present time as several people become caught up in the very controlling embrace of what this "church" has become. Much of this story is based on actual events experienced by the author in another well-known religion known for shunning and other dubious practices. The effects of such an authoritarian environment play out in the lives of the characters, especially in those of a series of intelligent and sympathetic women caught up in this web of intrigue which resonates quite powerfully with current events.
To my surprise, I was genuinely surprised and shocked several times in this novel as the plot and subplots took sharp turns, and towards the end I found myself fearing for the wellbeing of characters I had come to care about rather strongly. I highly recommend this novel by a talented writer.
Let me add that I read an electronic version of this book on my iPad and iPhone, which meant that I had it with me at all times - an experience that I can also highly recommend!
This book had several twists in it that surprized me. A great first effort by a relatively new writer. Great job Larry!
Interesting read and a page turner I must say. As another reviewer put it, it was a bit slow at the beginning but... worth the setup and the wait. I was honesty shocked in many parts of this book. The story line keeps you wondering what is going to happen next. I'm not very religious but the story sucked me in and I can see how the dynamics and politics of the interworking of such a community could exist. Well worth the read - thank you Larry.
Very apropos title as almost every chapter adds an element of deception. Interesting (fictional?) parallels to the Brighamite branch of Mormonism.
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